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The ''Chicago American'' was an American
newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...
published in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
under various names from 1900 until its dissolution in 1975. Its afternoon publication was known as the ''Chicago American'', while its evening publication was known as the ''Chicago Evening American''.


History

The paper's first edition came out on July 4, 1900, as '' Hearst's Chicago American''. It became the ''Morning American'' in 1902 with the appearance of an afternoon edition. The morning and Sunday papers were renamed as the ''Examiner'' in 1904.
James Keeley James Keeley (October 14, 1867 – June 7, 1934) was an Irish journalist, newspaper editor and publisher during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, who served as managing editor of the ''Chicago Tribune'' from 1898 to 1914. Keeley ...
bought the ''
Chicago Record-Herald The ''Chicago Record-Herald'' was a newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois from 1901 until 1914. It was the successor to the '' Chicago Morning Herald,'' the '' Chicago Times Herald'' and the ''Chicago Record''. H. H. Kohlsaat, owner of the ...
'' and ''
Chicago Inter-Ocean The ''Chicago Inter Ocean'', also known as the ''Chicago Inter-Ocean'', is the name used for most of its history by a newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, from 1865 until 1914. Its editors included Charles A. Dana and Byron Andrews. Histor ...
'' in 1914, merging them into a single newspaper known as the ''Herald''.
William Randolph Hearst William Randolph Hearst (; April 29, 1863 – August 14, 1951) was an American newspaper publisher and politician who developed the nation's largest newspaper chain and media company, Hearst Communications. His extravagant methods of yellow jou ...
purchased the paper from Keeley in 1918. Distribution of the ''Herald Examiner'' after 1918 was controlled by
gangsters A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level ...
.
Dion O'Banion Charles Dean O'Banion (July 8, 1892 – November 10, 1924) was an American mobster who was the main rival of Johnny Torrio and Al Capone during the brutal Chicago bootlegging wars of the 1920s. The newspapers of his day made him better know ...
,
Vincent Drucci Vincent Drucci (born Ludovico D'Ambrosio; January 1, 1898 – April 4, 1927), also known as "The Schemer", was an American mobster during Chicago's Prohibition era who was a member of the North Side Gang, Al Capone's best known rivals. A friend ...
,
Hymie Weiss Earl J. "Hymie" Weiss (born Henryk Wojciechowski; January 25, 1898 – October 11, 1926), was a Polish-American mob boss who became a leader of the Prohibition-era North Side Gang and a bitter rival of Al Capone. He was known as "the only ...
and
Bugs Moran George Clarence "Bugs" Moran (; born Adelard Leo Cunin; August 21, 1893 – February 25, 1957) was an American Chicago Prohibition-era gangster. He was incarcerated three times before his 21st birthday. Seven members of his gang were gunned ...
first sold the ''Tribune''. They were then recruited by
Moses Annenberg Moses Louis Annenberg (February 11, 1877 – July 20, 1942) was an American newspaper publisher who owned the ''Daily Racing Form'' and the ''Philadelphia Inquirer''. He also owned General News Bureau, a wire service that reported the results of ...
, who offered more money to sell the ''Examiner'', later the ''Herald-Examiner''. This "selling" consisted of pressuring stores and news dealers. In 1939, Annenberg was sentenced to three years in prison for fraud and died in prison. The newspaper joined the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
on October 31, 1932. Under pressure from his lenders, Hearst consolidated the ''American'' and the ''Herald-Examiner'' in 1939. It continued as the ''Chicago Herald-American'' until 1953 when it became the ''Chicago American''. The ''American'' was bought by the ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'' in 1956, and was renamed as ''Chicago's American'' in 1959. As with many other afternoon daily newspapers the paper suffered in postwar years from declining circulation figures caused in part by
television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
news and in part by population shifts from city to suburbs. The paper continued as an afternoon broadsheet until 1969 when the ''Tribune'' converted the paper to the tabloid-format ''Chicago Today''. Measures to bolster the paper were unsuccessful, and ''Chicago Today'' published its final issue on September 13, 1974. The ''Chicago Tribune'' inherited many of the ''Today'''s writers and staff and became a 24-hour operation. The ''American'' was the product of the merger or acquisition of 14 predecessor newspapers and inherited the tradition and the files of all of them. As an afternoon paper, the ''American'' was dependent on street sales rather than subscriptions, and breaking news helped bring in street sales. When
Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright Sr. (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed List of Frank Lloyd Wright works, more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key ...
announced plans to build a mile-high building in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, the ''American'' stole the drawings and printed them. The tradition was exemplified by the longtime night city editor of the ''American'', Harry "Romy" Romanoff, who could create news stories almost at will with only a telephone. He ran the city room at night with the help of two rewrite men (including Mike McGovern, noted below), one night photo editor, a sports desk editor (
Brent Musburger Brent Woody Musburger (born May 26, 1939) is an American sportscaster, currently the lead broadcaster and managing editor at Vegas Stats and Information Network (VSiN). With CBS Sports from 1973 until 1990, he was the original host of their ...
's first job out of journalism school), and one night copy boy who cut and pasted AP and UPI wires for Harry's review. Since the afternoon paper was put together the previous evening, the night city editor was the key news editor. Romanoff enjoyed the fearful but absolute regard of pressmen, the composing room and the entire night staff of the
Tribune Tower The Tribune Tower is a , 36-floor Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic skyscraper located at 435 Magnificent Mile, North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The early 1920s international design competition for the tower bec ...
, which owned and housed the ''Chicago Americans operations in its final decades. One night, floods threatened
Southern Illinois Southern Illinois is a region of the U.S. state of Illinois comprising the southern third of the state, principally south of Interstate 70. Part of downstate Illinois, it is bordered by the two List of U.S. rivers by discharge, most voluminous ri ...
, and the ''American'' did not have a big story for the front page. Romanoff called fire departments and police stations throughout the region, posing as "Captain Parmenter of the
state police State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdiction o ...
" (a nonexistent individual), urging them to take action. One fire department, bemused by the call, asked what they should do. "Ring those fire bells! Call out the people!" Romanoff then turned to his rewrite man to dictate the lead story: :Fire bells rang over southern Illinois as police and fire departments called out the people to warn them of impending floods. It never did flood, but the ''American'' had its banner headline. These headlines were necessary for sales of the early editions. Later in the day, breaking news would generally replace them or reduce their importance. Of course, many stories developed in this way were genuine scoops that would be expanded in later editions. The ''American'' gave the same attention to smaller stories as to large ones. It was usually first with police news. One notable headline: :Mother of 14 kids kills father of 9 in police station Headquarters for the paper was the Hearst Building, located at 326 West Madison Street in Chicago. In 1961, the offices of ''Chicago's American'' were moved adjacent to the
Tribune Tower The Tribune Tower is a , 36-floor Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic skyscraper located at 435 Magnificent Mile, North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, United States. The early 1920s international design competition for the tower bec ...
at 435 North Michigan Avenue, where they would remain until the ultimate demise of ''Chicago Today'' in 1974.


Notable people

In addition to Romanoff, notable ''American'' staff members included: * Frank R. Adams, reporter for ''Herald-Examiner'', author, songwriter and screenwriter * Ann Barzel, dance critic, 1951-1974 * Seymour Berkson, reporter for ''Herald-Examiner'', later general manager of the ''International News Service'' and publisher for the ''New York Journal-American'' * Claude Binyon, reporter for the ''Examiner'', became a Hollywood screenwriter and director * Arthur Brisbane, named editor of the ''Herald-Examiner'' in 1918; later became a renowned New York newspaper editor and syndicated columnist * Warren Brown (sportswriter), Warren Brown, sportswriter, covered 50 consecutive World Series; winner of Spink Award from baseball's Hall of Fame; * John Carmichael (sportswriter), John P. Carmichael, sportswriter 1927-32, then ''Chicago Daily News'' columnist and sports editor until 1972 * S. S. Chamberlain, ''Chicago Examiner'' editor; later editor of ''Cosmopolitan (magazine), Cosmopolitan'' magazine * Bartlett Cormack, reporter for the ''American'', then a Hollywood screenwriter whose films included ''The Racket (1927 film), The Racket'' and ''Fury (1936 film), Fury'', as well as the original adaptation of ''The Front Page (1931 film), The Front Page'' * Homer Davenport, cartoonist, came to ''Chicago Herald'' in 1893 during World's Columbian Exposition * Billy DeBeck, cartoonist, creator of comic strip ''Barney Google and Snuffy Smith, Barney Google'' * John Denson, editor; executive editor of ''New York Journal-American''; managing editor of ''Newsweek'' * Eddie Doherty, reporter for the ''Examiner'' and ''American'', then Oscar-nominated screenwriter of ''The Fighting Sullivans'' * Charles Dryden, considered the best baseball writer of his era; first hired in 1898 by the ''New York Journal''; capped his career with the ''Tribune'' and ''Herald-Examiner''; coined the name "Hitless Wonders" for the 1906 Chicago White Sox season, 1906 White Sox * Carl Ed, cartoonist, creator of comic strip ''Harold Teen'' * James Enright (referee), James Enright, sportswriter and basketball referee, inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame * Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame, Dave Feldman, the ''American''s horse-racing writer and handicapper from 1939-1968, then the same for the ''Chicago Daily News, Daily News'' and ''Chicago Sun-Times, Sun-Times'' * Leo Fischer, sports editor of the ''American'' from 1943-1969, and also after the paper became ''Chicago Today''; for four years, simultaneously was president of the National Basketball League (United States), National Basketball League, precursor to today's NBA * 1970 Pulitzer Prize, Tom Fitzpatrick, worked as a reporter for the ''American'' before joining the ''Sun-Times'' and winning a 1970 Pulitzer Prize * Hugh Fullerton, while covering the 1919 World Series for the ''Herald-Examiner'', became suspicious of the Chicago White Sox's play; his articles culminated in eight Sox players being accused of conspiring with gamblers and subsequently being banned from baseball for life * Chester Gould, cartoonist; creator of ''Dick Tracy''; drew a number of comic strips for the ''Evening American'' before being hired away by the ''Chicago Tribune'' in 1931 * Robert Gruenberg, Washington bureau chief for the ''American'', 1963–65 * Richard Hainey, the ''American''s executive editor. Bob Hainey, his brother and a ''Chicago Sun-Times, Sun-Times'' copy chief, was found dead on a Chicago street at 35; the circumstances were addressed by Bob's son, ''GQ'' magazine editor Michael Hainey, in a 2013 book, ''After Visiting Friends''. * Sydney J. Harris, wrote for the ''Herald-Examiner'' from 1934-41 before launching a long career as a columnist with the ''Chicago Daily News, Daily News'' * George Wheeler Hinman, ''Herald-Examiner'' publisher, after first being owner and editor of the ''Chicago Inter Ocean''; died in 1929 * Walter Howey, managing editor of the ''American'', beginning in 1917; widely presumed to be the inspiration for the colorful character of editor "Walter Burns" in the play ''The Front Page'' and subsequent film adaptations, including ''His Girl Friday'' * Harold L. Ickes, reporter for the ''Record'' at the turn of the century; U.S. Secretary of the Interior 1933-46 *
James Keeley James Keeley (October 14, 1867 – June 7, 1934) was an Irish journalist, newspaper editor and publisher during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, who served as managing editor of the ''Chicago Tribune'' from 1898 to 1914. Keeley ...
, owned the ''Herald'' from 1914–18; also served it as a World War I correspondent * Frank King (cartoonist), Frank King, cartoonist 1906-09; creator of ''Gasoline Alley (comic strip), Gasoline Alley'' * Ring Lardner, writer for ''Examiner'' in 1900s before becoming ''Tribune'' columnist and renowned author * Jonathan Latimer, crime reporter, covering Al Capone and others for the ''Herald-Examiner'', before becoming a novelist and Hollywood screenwriter; his scripts included ''Topper Returns'', ''The Glass Key (1942 film), The Glass Key'' and ''The Big Clock (film), The Big Clock'' * Jack Mabley, columnist and associate editor for the ''American'' and ''Chicago Today'' 1961-1974; one of his most famous columns was about the measured water pressure during commercial breaks on national TV broadcasts, determining that viewers were using the toilet during the breaks * Hazel MacDonald, born in 1890, wrote for ''Photoplay'' magazine, then reviewed films for the ''American'' until she was let go for crossing a picket line in 1938; became a war correspondent for the ''Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Daily Times'' * Charles Archibald MacLellan, illustrator for the ''Examiner'', later drew many covers for the ''Saturday Evening Post'' * Tiny Maxwell, football player; cub reporter for the ''Record-Herald''; college football's Maxwell Award is named for him * Maxwell McCrohon, ''American'' reporter in 1958; became managing editor of ''Chicago Today'' in 1970; named editor of the ''Tribune'' in 1972, and later was the ''Los Angeles Herald-Examiner'' editor when that paper closed *Michael McGovern, ''New York Daily News'' investigative reporter; once went door-to-door through Evanston, Illinois asking each woman in one neighborhood if she was the illegitimate daughter of Warren G. Harding * Buddy McHugh, thinly disguised as "McCue" in ''The Front Page'' * Arthur Meeker, Jr., novelist and socialite, wrote travel articles for the ''American'' * Merrill C. Meigs, publisher during the 1920s; also an aviator, for whom Meigs Field was named * Edgar Munzel, baseball writer, later of the ''Sun-Times'', winner of Spink Award, earning him induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame *
Brent Musburger Brent Woody Musburger (born May 26, 1939) is an American sportscaster, currently the lead broadcaster and managing editor at Vegas Stats and Information Network (VSiN). With CBS Sports from 1973 until 1990, he was the original host of their ...
, night sports editor of the ''American''; became a prominent
television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
sports personality for CBS and ABC; penned an infamous column describing Tommie Smith and John Carlos as "black-skinned storm troopers" for their protest of Racism in the United States, racial injustice in the United States during the 1968 Olympics Black Power salute, 1968 Summer OlympicsDave Zirin
After Forty-four Years, It's Time Brent Musburger Apologized to John Carlos and Tommie Smith
''The Nation'', June 4, 2012, Accessed September 10, 2012.
* George Murray, was once sent to Central America and told to "find a lost city," which he promptly did; wrote a memoir about the paper called ''The Madhouse on Madison Street (Chicago), Madison Street''Murray, George ''The Madhouse on Madison Street'' (Chicago: Follett, 1965). * Wallace Rice, reporter for the ''Herald-American''; author; designed the Flag of Chicago * Charles Edward Russell, muckraking journalist for the ''American'' in the early 20th century; 1928 Pulitzer Prize-winning author * E.C. Segar, cartoonist for the ''American'', creator of ''Popeye'' * Vaughn Shoemaker, two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist; ended his career with ''Chicago's American'' and ''Chicago Today'', retiring in 1972 after drawing approximately 14,000 cartoons * Sidney Smith (cartoonist), Sidney Smith, cartoonist for the ''Examiner'', 1908–11 * Wallace Smith (screenwriter), Wallace Smith, correspondent, covered Pancho Villa campaigns and Washington D.C. politics; became a Hollywood screenwriter, his films including 1927's ''Two Arabian Knights'' and 1934's ''The Captain Hates the Sea'' * Wendell Smith (sportswriter), Wendell Smith, pioneering African American sports reporter who was requested by Branch Rickey to travel with Jackie Robinson while he was breaking into triple-A and Major League Baseball; later a sportscaster for WGN-TV * Ashton Stevens, drama critic for ''Examiner'' and ''Herald American''; inspired Joseph Cotten's character in ''Citizen Kane'' * Roger Treat, vocal critic of segregation and editor of the first ''Pro Football Encyclopedia'' * William Veeck, Sr., sports columnist who was hired away to be Chicago Cubs vice-president by William Wrigley Jr. in 1917 after a series he wrote criticizing the team; after the Cubs won the 1918 National League pennant, he was promoted to club president * Lloyd Wendt, editor of the ''American'' from 1961–69; editor and publisher of ''Chicago Today'' 1969-70 * Brand Whitlock, reporter for the ''Herald''; later mayor of Toledo, Ohio and ambassador to Belgium * Frank Willard, cartoonist 1914-18, creator of ''Moon Mullins'' Also: *John F. Kennedy, the future U.S. president, worked as a reporter at the ''Chicago Herald-American'' after serving in the Navy during World War II in 1945, where he covered the United Nations Conference held in San Francisco and the elections that ousted Winston Churchill in 1945 from London. The job was lined up by his influential father, Joseph P. Kennedy. In the end, TV news brought an end to most afternoon papers, but up until the 1970s, Chicago had a competitive journalistic scene unmatched by most other American cities, five daily newspapers and four wire services in competition, and none were more competitive than ''Chicago's American''.


The ''American''s predecessor and successor newspapers

#''Morning Record'', March 13, 1893 – March 27, 1901 (originally ''News Record'', aka ''Morning News'', aka ''Chicago Daily News (Morning Edition)'' beginning July 24, 1881) #''Chicago Times'', June 1, 1861 – March 4, 1895 #''Chicago Republican'', May 30, 1865 – March 22, 1872 #''Chicago Inter Ocean, Inter Ocean'', March 25, 1872 – May 10, 1914 #''Chicago Daily Telegraph'', March 21, 1878 – May 9, 1881 #''Morning Herald'', May 10, 1893 – March 3, 1895 #''Times-Herald'', March 4, 1895 – March 26, 1901 #''Chicago American'', July 4, 1900 – August 27, 1939 #''
Chicago Record-Herald The ''Chicago Record-Herald'' was a newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois from 1901 until 1914. It was the successor to the '' Chicago Morning Herald,'' the '' Chicago Times Herald'' and the ''Chicago Record''. H. H. Kohlsaat, owner of the ...
'', March 28, 1901 – May 10, 1914 #''Chicago Examiner'', March 3, 1907 – May 1, 1918 #''Chicago Record Herald & Interocean'', May 11, 1914 – June 1, 1914 #''Chicago Herald'', June 14, 1914 – May 1, 1918 #''Herald-Examiner'', May 2, 1918 – August 26, 1939 #''Herald American'', August 26, 1939 – April 5, 1953 #''The Chicago American'', April 6, 1953 – September 23, 1959 #''Chicago's New American'', Sep 23, 1959 – October 24, 1959 (purchased by ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'') #''Chicago's American'', October 25, 1959 – April 27, 1969 #''Chicago Today American'', April 28, 1969 – May 23, 1970 #''Chicago Today'', May 24, 1970 – September 13, 1974


See also

* Wandt v. Hearst's Chicago American, ''Wandt v. Hearst's'' Chicago American


Footnotes

{{Reflist


External links


February 1922 front pages from the ''Chicago American''
Defunct newspapers published in Chicago Newspapers established in 1900 Publications disestablished in 1974 1900 establishments in Illinois 1974 disestablishments in Illinois